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Exotic World Day Two, The Pre Party

Over the course of the day, burlesquers from all around the world started to arrive in droves and at points, the hotel looked like it had been transported back to the 1940’s with all the corsets and hair weaves.

You could tell that the place was on glamour overload because some of the hardened gamblers actually managed to turn their heads away from their fruit machines for a few seconds of avid staring!

One thing that surprised me was how many people know about the Ministry Of Burlesque. It seems that we have rather a lot of fans out here – and not just the feathered kind. Pretty much everyone we spoke to wanted to know more about the UK scene and it was a pleasure to tell people about the other UK burlesque organizations that have helped to build up the scene over the past few years.

Anyway, on to the pre-party at the Beauty Bar in Fremont St which was hosted by the incredibly scarlet Tyler Fyre and the rampant Thrill Kill Jill (which I suspect was not the name she was born with). Their sword swallowing intro got
me thinking about how different performers use this skill and blend it into their own acts. UK burlesquers are no doubt familiar with the manic Bastard Son Of Tommy Cooper (YUM! YUM!) and the eccentrically charismatic Miss Behave from La Clique – well Mr Fyre is certainly up there in terms of flamboyance.

It was good to see a healthy contingent of UK-based burlesquers including the ever lovely Immodesty Blaize, sultry songstress Amber Topaz and the showgirl-tastic Sugar Kayne (okay, Ms Kayne is from Finland, but she’s based in London). Photographer Neil Kendall, who is creating a photographic book on Burlesque, featuring many of todays top stars, was also in attendance with his camera.

The show itself was split into ‘three halves’ and featured the talents of twenty three performers. As well as Kittie’s rousing Rule
Britannia act - described as a heady mix of patriotism and anti-patriotism rolled into one sexy package – other highlights included the Marilyn Monroe-esque talents of Jami Deadly, the beautifully choreographed Lili’s Burlesque Revue from ‘sunny’ Minneapolis and one of the best cancans I’ve seen for a long while from Vancouver’s frighteningly talented Sweet Soul Burlesque.

The most startlingly memorable moment of the evening belonged to Thrill Kill Jill and her big boa. Ms Kill Jill recreated the memorable scene in From Dusk Till Dawn which involved Selma Hayek dancing with a snake. The only difference was that Selma Hayek wasn’t bitten on the forehead during her performance. I managed to capture the event on video, including the gallant Tyler Fyre rescuing Thrill Kill Jills leg from the vice-like grip of the constrictor.

It’s testimony to her professionalism that she managed to carry on her performance – albeit with blood dripping from her face.

It was also great to meet Jason Croft, aka Java from Java’s Bachelor Pad. I’ve been a fan of this site for a long time and if you want to learn more about the vintage scene, you’re not going to find a better place on the web.

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